Lulu Is Grateful for Her Time on ‘The Summit’, Despite “Heartbreaking” Twist

June 5, 2023

The Summit Australia 2023 finale winner Lulu. — Nine

When Lulu Hawton, Isaac Compton, and Brooke Kilowsky made it to the peak of The Summit in last night’s finale episode, the trio assumed they would be splitting the $490,000 cash prize evenly between them. Unfortunately, the mountain held one final twist. Instead, all the eliminated Trekkers would decide how much money each winner received. Brooke took home $150,000, Isaac was rewarded with $250,000, and Lulu was given $90,000.

It’s no paltry sum, by any means, but speaking to The Latch, Lulu spoke about her lifelong journey of being a woman existing in male dominated fields, the “heartbreaking” finale twist, and her experience on The Summit Australia.

Lulu Is Grateful for Her Experience and Prize Money

Lulu was quick to note that her experience on The Summit was “amazing”, and that she was happy “to finally be able to celebrate it”.

“I had such a fun time, so I feel pretty good!” she said.

A two-time world champion boxer, Lulu loves to challenge herself and push herself to her physical limits.

“I was so happy to be out there,” she said. “Especially not being in the ring for so long — I felt like a big kid.

“I loved every moment of it, and I’m just so grateful to be able to say that I got to the top,” she said. “Not everybody can say that, and to also be rewarded for my hard work is just phenomenal.”

On the “Heartbreaking” Finale Twist

Lulu had gone into The Summit with a gameplan. She wanted to play hard, keep her eyes on the prize, and make it to the top. In order to do that, she — along with her number one ally and fellow winner Brooke — was forced to make some difficult strategic decisions, cutting some of the other Trekkers’ dreams short in order to ensure her own survival.

What Lulu didn’t anticipate, though, was that those same Trekkers would be the ones who got to decide how much of the prize money she received in the end. She recalled that in that moment, her “gut was flipping”, as she realised her fate was no longer in her hands.

“When the twist came, realising it was up to them, it was quite heartbreaking, to be honest,” she said. “After you’ve put in all the hard work — I never complained the whole time up the mountain, it was such a joy, I helped people along the way — to know that it was out of your hands and in somebody else’s hands, it’s a tough decision.”

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A post shared by Lulu Hawton (@bangbanglulu_)

Lulu Wishes Her Hard Work Had Been Recognised

As we chatted, the conversation drifted to another reality competition — Australian Survivor, where strategy is often lauded and rewarded. Lulu wished that her fellow Trekkers had been more willing to acknowledge the strategy that got her to the end.

Noting that her friendship with Brooke strengthened both of their gameplans, Lulu credited their alliance for why they “were both standing at the top together”.

“When it came to the point where we had to really start being strategic, it wasn’t easy,” Lulu said. “It was probably one of the toughest things for me, because at that stage, you’ve created good bonds with people, but my loyalty was always going to be with Brooke.

“I had her back 100%, but to cut those people right at the end would’ve had them feeling pretty salty and sour about it, and I definitely felt that at the end. It was still fresh in their mind, that we’re up there and they weren’t, so I think there was a bit of sourness.”

Lulu reiterated that she was “super super grateful” to still go home with a prize, but she couldn’t help but feel that it was “a shame that women couldn’t have been celebrated for [their] hard work”.

Indeed, it’s something Lulu has experienced throughout her career.

Lulu’s Life As a Woman in Male-Dominated Fields

During her time on The Summit, Lulu spoke openly about the gender pay gap between male and female boxers. During the finale, she reminded her fellow Trekkers that despite her boxing success, it hadn’t led to financial security.

Before boxing, Lulu was a skateboarder, and once again, “it was the same way, being a woman in a male-dominated world”.

She had hoped that things on The Summit would be different.

“I felt like this time it would be an equal opportunity, but it wasn’t, you know what I mean?” she mused. “I just feel that women deserve to be recognised and celebrated the way that men are, especially when your hard work has proven you to do great things.”

While Lulu and Brooke had made many strategic decisions along the way, Lulu said that Isaac hadn’t been put in the hot seat like she had.

“There were times when [Isaac] had to make a few decisions, but there were so many people that it didn’t really matter,” she explained. “That’s why it made such a big difference at the end, because that’s when everything matters.

“At the end of the day, the 14 of us who went into it all had the same agenda: to get to the top, and to win,” she said. “I do wonder if Isaac had to make some of those calls whether things would’ve been different. But then, I was grateful that I got to make those calls, because I was safe, and Brooke was safe.”

The Summit Australia is streaming now on 9Now.

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